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28225 FI Brochure 12p.indd 1 26/01/2012 12:39

Welcome to Furness Independent Financial AdvisersFurness Independent is a wholly owned subsidiary of Furness Building Society Group, specialising in the provision of face to face advice to individuals, trustees and businesses. Being part of a mutual society, we believe that we offer the best quality of advice and service delivered by highly qualified professional advisers.

A relationship with a financial adviser is very important. Being able to speak to a professional who understands your circumstances and can deliver quality advice that will help you develop your own financial plans is a key part of planning for the future.

We are committed to delivering the highest quality of service to all our clients through the continued professional development of our advisers to ensure that they remain appropriately qualified and technically able.

The following pages expand on our service proposition and how we can assist you in delivering a long standing financial services proposition.

Nigel Quinton Chief Executive - Furness Building Society


We are committed to delivering the highest

quality of service to all our clients.

How can we help you?At Furness Independent Financial Advisers we offer a comprehensive advice service to individuals, businesses and trustees. This is based on working closely with our clients’ to understand their individual needs before researching the whole of the market to find the most suitable solutions.

What is Financial Planning?

Financial Planning is the process of meeting your financial objectives through the professional management of your financial affairs.

This process involves obtaining a comprehensive understanding of your current financial arrangements, and agreeing with you a strategy that will achieve your future goals. We achieve this through initially discussing with you your aspirations and what plans you currently have in place, and then reviewing all of this information to provide you with recommendations to achieve your future goals.

The Benefits of Financial Planning

Planning provides direction and meaning to your finances and financial decisions. Having an appropriate plan in place ensures that you gain the maximum benefit from your savings, investments, retirement plans and protection arrangements.

Financial planning allows you to understand how each element of your current and future requirements affect your aspirations and needs for the future.

Through regular reviews these plans can be monitored and amended as your circumstances and needs may change.


What you can expect from our Financial Planning Process?Furness Independent Financial Advisers will clearly explain the service that we provide and how we will be remunerated and by whom.

To ensure that we provide you with the best possible advice, we will need you to provide us with details about your assets, liabilities, income and expenditure. In addition we will discuss and agree your financial needs and goals.

We will then analyse all of this information that you have given to us, so that we may assess your current situation and determine what else you may need to meet your goals.

A personalised financial plan will then be prepared for you outlining the recommendations that we feel will be most appropriate to meeting your future requirements. This report will be discussed thoroughly with you so that you are able to make an informed decision.

Once reviewed, agreement will be obtained as to how best the recommendations can be implemented. This may involve working closely with other advisers that you may have such as accountants or solicitors.

As your circumstances may change in the future, it is essential that any financial plan is reviewed regularly to ensure that it continues to meet your goals and objectives.

Investment PlanningThere are many different types of investments available, and it is

crucial that the correct recommendations are made to suit your own individual circumstances.

When selecting an investment solution one of the key areas that needs to be discussed is the level of risk that you are prepared

to take with your available funds. Risk relates to the capacity for incurring a loss, and this is fundamentally important to you.

Whether you have existing capital that you have available or have received an inheritance or unexpected receipt of a cash fund, we need to consider the reason for the investment. This may be to achieve a higher income, capital growth or a combination of both. Your objective for the investment provides the foundation of the financial plan.

Once the above have been agreed, research can be undertaken with regards to your existing investments and potential solutions to meet your goals. These include ensuring that investments are made in the most tax efficient manner.

Solutions can involve the recommendations of a portfolio of investments, or individual plans that give you the opportunity of tracking the performance via personalised access to a company website.

With any investment plan the key is to ensure that regular reviews are undertaken.


With any investment plan the key is to ensure

that regular reviews are undertaken.

Investment PlanningThere are many different types of investments available, and it is

crucial that the correct recommendations are made to suit your own individual circumstances.

When selecting an investment solution one of the key areas that needs to be discussed is the level of risk that you are prepared

to take with your available funds. Risk relates to the capacity for incurring a loss, and this is fundamentally important to you.

Whether you have existing capital that you have available or have received an inheritance or unexpected receipt of a cash fund, we need to consider the reason for the investment. This may be to achieve a higher income, capital growth or a combination of both. Your objective for the investment provides the foundation of the financial plan.

Once the above have been agreed, research can be undertaken with regards to your existing investments and potential solutions to meet your goals. These include ensuring that investments are made in the most tax efficient manner.

Solutions can involve the recommendations of a portfolio of investments, or individual plans that give you the opportunity of tracking the performance via personalised access to a company website.

With any investment plan the key is to ensure that regular reviews are undertaken.


Tax PlanningWith any financial plan, the implications of taxation need to taken into account to ensure a tax efficient solution is provided. There are a number of different taxes that may be relevant to the financial planning process:

1. Income Tax – reducing the impact of Income Tax wherever possible can have a positive effect on an overall financial planning process.

This may involve reviewing the structure of investments or using tax efficient solutions to take any income received out of the taxation process.

2. Capital Gains Tax – some investments may be subject to Capital Gains Tax when they are realised. As each individual and trust has a Capital Gains Tax allowance, it is important that through the regular review process, any gains made from an investment are realised in the most tax efficient manner.

3. Corporation Tax – this area of taxation applies to Limited companies, and there are ways in which corporate financial planning can assist in reducing the amount of tax payable.

In all areas of taxation planning we are able to work closely with your accountants to deliver the appropriate solutions to your needs.

The Financial Services Authority does not regulate and Tenet Connect Ltd are not responsible for advice in this area.


With any estate plan the key is to ensure that regular

reviews are undertaken.Estate Planning*

We would all like to protect the value of our estate for the benefit of the next generation. However in many

cases the main beneficiary is the HM Government, as many people have not made any plans with regards to this area.

The first step in estate planning is to ensure that you have an up to date Will that meets your requirements and is constructed efficiently from a taxation point of view.

Over the years there have been many changes to Inheritance tax, and there are likely to be additional changes in the future. Whilst you may have made plans some years ago that were very effective at the time, have these been reviewed recently to make sure that they still have the tax efficiency under current legislation?

There are a number of possible solutions to Estate Planning that can be considered such as:

• Using the annual gift allowances

• Making larger gifts that can be Potentially Exempt Transfers if you survive a period of seven years

• Placing assets into a trust

• Using a life assurance plan to cover the liability

• Gifting away surplus income

It is important that the correct solution is taken and that it is regularly reviewed due to the changes in legislation.

Long Term Care

With people living longer due to medical advances, so the need for long term care

becomes more important. This form of care can be very expensive and can result

in the deterioration in the value of the assets that you may wish to pass on under the terms

of your Will.

Effective planning can help you ensure that you receive the care that you deserve, but also have assets to pass on

to the next generation.

*The Financial Services Authority does not regulate and Tenet Connect Ltd are not responsible for advice in some areas of Estate Planning.


Retirement PlanningThere have been many changes to the rules relating to retirement planning over the past few years, which have resulted in different types of pension arrangements.

Personal Pensions – these are individual plans to which both an individual and company can contribute and receive tax relief on the contributions.

Some people have accumulated a number of these plans over their working life, without ever reviewing their performance or suitability. Over recent years the charges relating to pension plans have reduced. By reviewing the plans, this could improve your retirement income.

Self Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) – this plan differs from a personal pension in that it enables the plan holder to select from a wider range of investments within the plan (guidelines apply).

SIPPs may be used to purchase commercial property. This makes them of particular relevance to directors or sole traders who may wish to purchase a property for their own business.

Company Schemes – whether you have a company scheme at the moment or are considering starting one for your employees, we can assist you in making sure that the arrangements are the most effective for your needs.

We are able to offer advice to both Employers and Employees to ensure that you comply with the latest legal requirements.


Post Retirement PlanningWhen considering the options at retirement it is important that you make the correct decision, as once made it is often not possible to reverse the decision.

Annuities

An annuity is where you buy a guaranteed income for life based on the value of your pension funds. When you retire you will have the option to take a cash lump sum, and the remainder of the fund could be used to purchase an annuity.

The annuity rate offered by your current pension provider may not the best available. We are able to research the whole market to make sure that you receive the best available annuity based on your current circumstances. If you are in poor health or smoke, we may be able to obtain a substantially higher income throughout your retirement.

We are able to offer advice to both Employers

and Employees to ensure that you comply

with the latest legal requirements.


Income drawdownThis provides you with a flexible option to post retirement benefits.

The pension fund continues to remain invested so the value could fluctuate depending on your investment strategy. As this value fluctuates so could the level of pension income that you draw from the fund.

To make sure that your fund continues to meet your income requirements it is essential that you receive the correct professional advice at outset and also through the life of the drawdown.

Phased Retirement

Phased Retirement allows you the flexibility to take benefits from a portion of your personal pension funds, leaving the balance invested.

Income is achieved by encashing segments of the plan with the option of taking 25% of each segment tax free, with the balance being used to purchase an annuity. This provides a very tax efficient way in which benefits can be taken.


ProtectionLife Assurance

The correct form of life assurance is key to ensuring that in the event of death your dependants are protected against the financial implications that this may have on them.

Critical Illness

This form of cover provides a benefit in the event of you being diagnosed with a serious illness such as heart attack, stroke or certain types of cancer. This could result in you being away from work for a long period of time and as a result place undue financial pressures on you.

This cover will provide a lump sum benefit that could relieve the financial pressure for you.

Income Protection

Some employers will provide a benefit to you if you are off work long term due to illness. However, this benefit may only last for a short period of time, after which you may become reliant on the Statutory Sick pay. If you are self employed your income may cease totally if you are off ill.

Consideration should be given as to how you will manage should long term illness occur.

Business ProtectionKey Person Cover

Should a key employee be incapacitated or die, this could have significant financial implications on the continuation of the business.

By taking out the appropriate cover, this could give the business the required financial strength through a very difficult time to ensure that the business is able to continue to trade.

Share/Partnership Protection

Where a business is owned by a number of shareholders or partners, the death of one or more of these can affect the business in several ways.

1. The deceased’s estate may wish to sell their part of the business, so the business/owners will need to find the finance to facilitate this.

2. The deceased’s share of the ownership of the business may pass to a third party who has no knowledge of the business, but wants to be a part of the future running of the business.

By taking the correct advice relating to business protection these situations can be addressed.

To make sure that your protection

continues to meet your requirement . . .


Furness Independent Financial Advisers Limited51-55 Duke Street, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria LA14 1RTTelephone: 01229 845235Facsimile: 01229 833845www.furnessifa.co.uk

Furness Independent Financial Advisers Ltd is an appointed representative of Tenet Connect Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.


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